Boom
by nicksfriend
Summary: Tony has to diffuse a bomb, it will be his first. Is there something more than a kidnapping and a group that appears to be just an ordinary drug cartel? Nothing is never what it appears to be in the life of our favorite agent. Poor Tony.
1. Chapter 1

**Tony rounded the parking deck area, gunfire was all around him, the sound of terrifying screams filled his senses as he rounded the last crate, "What the hell is this place?", he asked himself as he noted hte many wooden crates between the parked cars.  
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" **DiNozzo, do you have our target located?" Gibbs gruff voice echoed in his ears.  
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" **Boss what I have are screams and a no visual. Give me a second, okay, not seeing too much from this position." he crawled along the cold concrete, he knew if if he raised his head it would definitely catch a bullet.**

" **I need a sitrep DiNozzo!" Gibbs called out as he unloaded his gun towards the oncoming rapid rounds.**

" **He is the most impatient man I have ever worked for." Tony mumbled to himself as he sought a safe area to hide behind so he could get a better look at the parking area.**

" **Heard that DiNozzo." Gibbs growled.**

" **Sorry boss. I have something though." he made a quick movement with gun drawn catching a glimpse of the girl as he did his fast visual take on the surrounding area.**

" **Boss I have visual!" Tony whispered into his earwig, continuous gunfire keeping him pinned in position now, across the parking area from his target. " Well Tony, this isn't looking so good, what would Bond do?" he whispered to himself as he pondered the predicament.**

" **Well, do I have to ask for more DiNozzo or do I need to take you out to dinner first?" Gibbs voice was irate, his sarcasm in high gear and his temper on edge, but given the fact that the woman being held hostage was a diplomat's daughter and was about to be killed, it was actually expected.**

" **She seems to be tethered to something boss, possibly a bomb." He took a quick glance from around the crate he was hidden behind to get a better look and saw the timer," Yeah, it's a bomb. Where the hell is Ziva?" he asked nervously, his voice cracking with fear, Gibbs could hear the sudden desperation, _the uncertainty_, in his SFA's voice. **

**The twenty-one year old young lady was looking very frightened, she was crying hysterically and he couldn't blame her right now, she was about to be blown off the face of the earth, _literally_. Tony was hoping for the calvary to ride in but in reality he knew that he was probably on his own this time.**

"**Ziva is under fire, she won't be comingTony." he looked around, he was too far from his second to be of any assistance, Tony was on his own. " McGee, I need you to assist DiNozzo, got me?"**

**Tim sat at his desk at the office, he had been listening in to the team's communications and his fingers were doing a rapid search for the bomb that Tony was sending him an image of, but unfortunately he wasn't the bomb squad and he was having a difficult time getting information. " Can't find it in our data base boss, Tony." his voice was filled with emotion, his partner was in the direct line of fire if the bomb exploded.**

" **Well, that is not what I wanted to hear McBombsquad." He glanced over to the timer, he could barely see the numbers from his hidden position but if what he saw was correct, he had less than a minute to figure out what it was he was going to have to do to save the beautiful woman, and right now he definitely wasn't feeling too much like James Bond.**

"**Gibbs, cover my ass!" Tony screamed into his earwig, he had to save her somehow, it was not going to be an easy task, but hell, his life had never been easy.**

"**Dammit DiNozzo!" he raised his glock and started shooting in the direction of the offending gunfire, his only thought at the moment was how, if his second survived, he was going to kick his ass.**

**Tony ran across the parking area, full speed, hoping for an assist from Tim, praying for a miracle. His body slid into a space between the girl and the bomb, her face marred with bruises and tears.**

" **Hi, my name is Tony. I need to see what I need to do to get us out of here alive." his eyes immediately went to the number of seconds left on the timer, less than forty. "Damn!" he muttered to himself.**

"**You need to get out of here. I am going to die, but you don't have to mister." her sweet voice penetrated his heart, he had to save her, them.**

" **Hell, my boss is going to kill me so either way I am going to die might as well let me do what I can here." his hands were already busy opening the timer box, surveying the wires so that Tim could get a visual too.**

" **McGee, I really need your assist." he called out into his mic nervously, beads of sweat forming on his brow.**

**At that moment McGee's screen decided to give him what he so desperately needed, "Tony, I have it. The red wire is connected to the main timer, do not cut it, the white wire is connected to the main battery, don't cut it either." **

**Tim's voice could be heard in his earpiece, his options dwindling fast, " Twenty-two seconds McTimesrunningout." Tony's voice echoed through the mic, he sounded really scared to Tim's ears.**

"**Cut the black wire Tony!" McGee answered quickly, wanting Tony to get the hell away from the bomb with the girl.**

" **You sure Timmy?" He wanted to be sure, a mistake would kill them both.**

" **Yeah, but cut it as close to the main box entrance as possible, sometimes there are booby traps." He continued, waiting for Tony's voice, seconds passed then suddenly he heard a sound he had not expected.**

**The sound of the explosion caused his ears to ring, and he immediately threw off his ear piece, the bomb had exploded.**

_**I know, I have too many stories in process but I had to get it out of my brain. It will be two chapters only. Tomorrow, I promise the ending.  
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	2. Chapter 2

_**Dangit, I forgot to post my disclaimer. Okay here it goes, I do not own them, I only play with them and then I return them how I found them, there, I did it so let us continue with the story now.**_

The force of the explosion pushed their bodies through the now open stairway door, Tony protecting the younger woman by shielding her with his body.

They continued forward, Tony feeling the pain of each sharp concrete stair as they tumbled down. Tony moaned as he finally made contact with the solid wall, the lighting was gone, the explosion had taken out the electrical power.

"You okay?" He was finally able to get it out after several gut wrenching coughs.

"Mmm." her only response.

"That can't be good." He reached up and felt his head, definitely a gash towards the back, he could feel the stickiness of the blood. "Your luck DiNozzo."

He felt light headed, the sudden stop of wall and body had resulted in a few bruises and a concussion. He needed to contact Gibbs and as he reached up to feel for his earwig he realized it was missing and so was the one in his sleeve. "Well, that sucks." he mumbled as his hands started to check his charge for injuries, it was difficult to ascertain in the darkness of the smokey stairwell.

As he checked to make sure she actually still had a pulse and she did, another realization hit him, usually where there is smoke, there is fire and he needed to get the woman out of danger.

"Dammit, we got to get out of here." he spoke it out loud as he eased her body off his and attempted to stand, the dizziness and the wheezing in his chest causing him to move slower than usual. Although he still had the adrenaline pumping he managed to right himself and to reach down and gather the diplomat's daughter into his arms.

As he started down what was left of the rest of the stairs he could not help but to wonder if they would make it but he knew he was doing it for the woman, he had to do it. Only four more floors to go he thought to himself as he let out a string of torturous coughs.

"McGee! Can you locate them?" Gibbs was screaming over the discarded earpiece which Tim quickly picked up, still stunned and with his ears still ringing from the explosion.

"Boss, looking for Tony's GPS now." he croaked out, his shaky fingers now hitting keys on the key board faster than he had ever typed.

"Oh my gosh, Tony blew up!" Abby ran screaming into the room. Tears and panic flooded the room as she entered. She had been watching on her plasma in the lab.

Tim looked up at her but did not have time to respond, "Boss I found him, he's on the move."

"Where is he moving McGee? All I see is smoke and fire!" Gibbs continued to shout into Tim's ear piece.

"Stairwell! He is in the stairwell located adjacent to where he found Miranda." he explained as he continued to watch the locator move down towards the lower end of the building.

"Ziver, location?" Gibbs asked as he looked around for another stairwell, the smoke was getting too much for his own senses to bare and he started to feel a little dizzy, but he quickly located another stairwell exit and ran towards it, gun still drawn, the dangers of the mission still real and ongoing.

" I am outside on the south lawn area, my targets are down." she reported, "I am going towards the east side to see if I can enter through the stairway." She had heard the explosion, she had also listened to Tim's directions as to where Tony might be, and she was going there to assist, her gun still drawn.

"I'll meet you there!" Gibbs replied as he made his way down the concrete stairs, each one causing havoc to his knees, _he never liked stairs._

Tony continued his way down the stairs, each one more difficult as the smoke got thicker and the dizziness started getting worse."Miranda, I hope you are doing okay." he continued talking to the woman in his arms as he went down each flight of stairs, not wanting to frighten her if she was awake. But, there was no response, not even a moan, but she still had a pulse, though weak, she still had a pulse.

He suddenly had to stop, he heard voices, unfamiliar voices. "Dammit!" he cursed as his hand automatically reached for his gun as he balanced Miranda precariously in his arms, but he must had dropped it as he was pushed through the stairwell doors.

He knew that they would not come into the stairway but he also knew that staying in the smoke filled area was not an option and the only door to get out of the smoke filled hell was blocked by the men.

He slid down the wall, needing to catch his breath and to see if the dizziness he was experiencing would pass, he felt like he was about to go out, but he knew that would be detrimental not only to himself but also for the beautiful daughter of the diplomat that they had been protecting from the drug cartel.

"Okay DiNozzo, you don't have a gun, you dropped your knife after cutting the plastic bonding that tied the bomb to Miranda and you have no way to communicate. Well, I would say that is one of hell of a predicament." he could still hear the voices outside the door, they seemed louder though and suddenly the sounds of gunfire could be heard but he was too weak, too tired to do anything but let the darkness consume him.

"Gibbs I have company!" Ziva yelled into her earwig, "Four, maybe five!"

"I have your back Ziva!" Gibbs was now in her peripheral vision.

Ziva took a shot and one of the men fell, then all hell broke loose. Suddenly sirens could be heard off in the distance, and the gunfire continued.

_**Georgetown Memorial Hospital**_

The soft beep of a monitor is what got his attention first then the soft voices intermixed with the smells of alcohol and disinfectant.

"Oh hell, I must be in a hospital." His damaged vocal cords spoke it before he could get his eyes opened and focused on the people in the room.

"Tony?" the voice asked as if they really weren't sure if it was him or not.

He looked down to note a few things before he answered, his left arm was in a cast, so was his left leg and he had evidently been attached to a ventilator at some point because the damned machine was still sitting beside his bed.

" Is it cocktail hour yet?" Even though his voice was weak he was able to give them his infamous DiNozzo grin and attempted to focus on the closest face to his right side, his left sided vision still was a little blurry.

"Tony, you're awake!" Abby grabbed his chest and gave it a strong hug, and even though it hurt he didn't mind, it was Abs and that is what Abs does, hug.

Suddenly things caught up to his slow brain and the cells seemed to be getting oxygen again because it suddenly dawned on him that he was no longer in the stairwell and Miranda was gone.

"Miranda, where's Miranda?" His voice was strained, difficult to get out as he started to get up, the rush of energy was short lived though and Gibbs strong hand easily pushed him back down on the bed.

"She's fine DiNozzo. She was treated and discharged home with her father, the cartel was shut down." he stepped back a little and allowed the news to seep into Tony's awake state.

Tony nodded, "That's good."His damaged voice was able to edge out as his hand automatically started patting Abby's.

"You... are a hero!" Ziva announced as she bounced into the small ICU cubicle.

Tony's cheeks turned red at the announcement, it was a team effort and nothing more, just doing their job.

"I passed out Ziva. Not a hero." he croaked out of his damaged throat.

"Not according to the newspaper and Vance." McGee added as he followed Ziva into the room, " I do believe you will finally get that medal after all these years. Vance wrote you a commendation himself." Tim smiled as he handed the newspaper to Tony.

Tony nodded, he really didn't feel like a hero or that he had earned a medal, he felt as if he was broken in too many places and that he needed to be put back together again.

Gibbs was very good at reading his second and he knew that visiting time had come to an end.

"Okay, everybody out, Tony needs to rest and the nurse needs to do her assessment." He pointed towards the door as the nurse entered, seeing for the first time that her patient had awakened.

They all gave Tony hugs and kisses and pats on Tony's right shoulder as they left the room, all happy that their friend was still alive.

The room emptied and the nurse did her job, finishing it with a injection of pain medication so that her very familiar patient would rest.

Gibbs sat in the corner of the room, where he always sit when Tony had to be admitted. He knew that Tony would never see himself as a hero but he knew a hero when he saw one and his second was_ definitely a hero._

_**There might be another chapter, Gibbs and Tony time. I love Gibbs and Tony time.**_


	3. Chapter 3

It was midnight before he awakened again, he could sense Gibbs was still in the room, he could smell the scent of bourbon and lacquer. He wondered silently how he had broken his arm, his leg and how he ended up in the hospital.

He was very happy that Miranda had survived, the bomb had been attached to her wrist bindings, they wanted her to die, he had interrupted their plans. He was good actually at pissing off drug lords and terrorists, he did have a knack about him for putting a bullseye on his back.

" You carried her down the stairs with a broken leg and a broken arm DiNozzo. She would have never had made it without you, she would have died in the explosion." Gibbs voice interrupted his silent thoughts, usually he thought out loud but not when he knew his boss was in ears reach.

"Last thing I remember was it all going BOOM and then being thrown down the stairs with the force of the blast. If it hadn't been for Tim I would have blown up with her, we would have been blown into smithereens." his damaged voice was evident, the intubation tube and the smoke had done a number on his throat.

"I hate to tell you DiNozzo but Tim was looking at the wrong bomb diagram and gave the wrong instructions, you and Miranda were just damned lucky period that the bomb didn't go off before you got to the stairwell." he stood up and made his way over to his second's bed and gave him a small grin, "Hell, you said it yourself, Tim is no bomb expert and he feels really bad that you got hurt."

" He gave me faith though, I would have never had the nerve to guess at it and wrong or right he bought us enough time to get to the stairway. I guess the bomb had a trigger, a delay possibly because it definitely went boom right after we got to the stairwell." He raised his right hand to rub at the dressing on the back of his head, it was sore to touch, he guessed he had several stitches in addition to a cracked skull.

"That's what I like about you Tony, you always give others the credit for the good things that you do, you did that with me and Maddie too, you really have a problem with being a hero." Gibbs looked down to see that talking about what happened was clearly what Tony didn't want to talk about, he was too modest.

" Had a good teacher." he gave his boss a small smile and allowed it to sink in before he spoke again." Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." he wanted Gibbs to know that he too had experienced the same thoughts when he had put his life on the line for them.

Gibbs ignored the hint and proceeded, " Hey, the doctor told me that you will have to stay another few days for antibiotics, but that he would move you to a private room as soon as your last chest xray reading is posted in the computer." he walked back over and picked up his newspaper and sat back down, "I'm here if you want to talk DiNozzo."

Tony nodded, he wanted to talk but about anything other than almost getting his ass killed, again.

_**The next morning**_

The staff waited until after breakfast before they moved their prized patient, wanting him to get a little bit more uninterrupted sleep, he would be surely bombarded by people when he moved to another room, they just hoped he didn't overdo it, he still had a lot of healing to do, both physically and mentally.

The next time Tony awakened he could hear the voices of both his team and of Vance in the room. His first inclination was to play possum and pretend he was sleeping but he knew that they would figure him out. He opened his eyes to be greeted by a lot of smiling faces.

"Good morning Agent DiNozzo, I hope you're having a better day than you had a few days ago." Vance greeted him in a too happy of a tone, he wasn't use to the director being nice to him, if felt odd. " I thought you would have more hearing damage given the distance from the bomb and the stairwell, but after ballistics and Abby took a look at the bomb, it was actually homemade, powerful enough to blow off a limb or two and burn out a few cars but not strong enough to put a dent into the concrete."

Vance walked over to show him the aftermath of the bomb's work, a visual portrait of burned out cars and a lot of broken glass but the building was still intact.

"Actually, it would have killed Miranda if you had not interfered with the bomb maker's plan. The stairwell saved you both it seems, the building was actually built during the cold war, more of a bomb shelter than a garage, the stairwell was well built and protected both of you from too much damage, but looks like the blast did send you through the door, a few metal fragments found lodged in your back confirmed that it was not made of the usual bomb materials, it was meant to be a low key bomb, one that would not bring a lot of attention to the building, they didn't want their cover blown, just the girl."

Tony was having some difficulty understanding bomb speak and he really didn't care too much at the moment, he was just glad to have his hearing intact and his body still functioning to some degree. "What were those cartel guys thinking?" his words almost sounded sarcastic but the others knew it was his way of dealing with the experience of almost dying, they knew him too well.

Tony wanted to change the subject, get the attention away from what he had just experienced. He actually wanted to be alone but knew that would not be happening anytime soon.

" What they were thinking Agent DiNozzo was that you and the rest of the team would be a show. They just wanted to do a quick kill and be done with it, clean up the mess and move on with their plans. They didn't count on Intel revealing their plans, or the fact we have a damned good group of agents who would risk their lives saving a diplomat's daughter. Guess they do now though." he gave Tony a smile and turned to Gibbs, "Let me know if there is anything I can do for the team, for now you are off rotation until next week" he started for the door, "As for you Agent DiNozzo, I do not want to see your ass back at work until you are one-hundred percent." he gave the man in the bed a smile and left the room.

"See, I told you Tony, he is quiet the happy man." Tim stated it as if he wanted his friend to know that for once Vance was showing him some respect, it was about time.

Tony seemed unconcerned with Director Vance or his all of a sudden nice attitude, he was more concerned as to why the drug cartel had kidnapped the twenty-one year old from her college dorm, drug her to an abandoned building, tethered her to a homemade bomb and then decided they wanted to blow her up instead of just shooting her, or one of the many other methods of death. Why a bomb if the team wasn't suppose to find her, or anybody else for that matter, it didn't make any sense. '_They knew they would risk their lives to save the girl.' _Vance's words echoed in his mind.

" Something is wrong boss." he said it softly, it was almost inaudible.

Gibbs looked over at Tony, he could see the wheels turning in his second's head, he had to ask, he knew he would not regret it, he didn't call DiNozzo the best young agent he had ever worked with for no reason. " What is it DiNozzo?"

Tony shook his head as if to shake away the cobwebs, "Why such a sissy bomb, I still have my hearing intact, I almost walked away without a scratch and would have if I had gotten through the door a little bit sooner. And why a diplomat's daughter? It doesn't make sense, it doesn't even kind of makes any sense. The diplomat is from Pakistan, his daughter just so happens to attend a college here in the United States? This man has nothing to do with the drug cartel, neither does his daughter, it just doesn't add up boss."

Gibbs started to listen as his second, who knew far less about the facts than the rest of them, yet he was stunned that his second was actually figuring the puzzle out. The plan had been too clean, it had to be something else, more than drugs. What it actually was sounding like was more of a terrorist plot that a drug deal gone bad.

" Miranda was never the target." Gibbs was getting the same feel for the closed case.

" I didn't see the bomb explode boss, we had gotten several feet away but I never felt the heat." he paused as he continued to remember the moment of the bomb exploding. He closed his eyes to picture the device, the blasting cap, the detonator, something was off. He tried to remember something that he knew he had forgotten. What the hell was it though?

" It never was meant to explode, it wouldn't have exploded if I hadn't tripped it with cutting the wire, it was a dummy. A dummy that ended up exploding. They used us boss, those weren't members of a drug cartel, they were members of something far more devious, a terrorists plot, one that required more than the FBI to foil, instead we were suppose to die attempting to foil a kidnapping plot that was never a kidnapping, instead we stumbled on a much more complex plan."

Gibbs was attempting to understand, but he was lost. " What is the missing piece DiNozzo?"

"Abby, take my clothes and test the blood, Miranda's blood should be on my shirt or jacket, test the blood to see if she is a DNA match to our diplomat Corporal Blanchard, see if she really is his daughter." Tony started to push back the blanket on his bed, he needed to see the scene before it was cleaned up.

"Woooo Tony, where do you think you're going?" Gibbs already stopping him with a strong hand.

"I need to see the crime scene, I need to see where the bomb exploded, I'm missing something, something important." He watched as Ziva and Tim gathered their things and headed for the door, they would be his eyes, they would get what Tony needed because they all knew that Gibbs would not allow Tony to leave the hospital.

"I will test the blood and get back the results as soon as I can." Abby grabbed her coat then left and soon thereafter so did Ducky and Palmer, now the room was empty, the team was following the SFA's lead on the case.

" Lie back down Tony, the team will get what you need. In the mean time I want your to rest." he assisted Tony to a comfortable position in his bed and watched as the nurse entered to give her agitated patient something to help him rest, per Ducky's request. It didn't take long after the drug was injected that Tony was sleeping.

Gibbs pulled out his cell, he needed to talk to Vance, there was a real possibility that their Diplomat was tied in with terrorists and a larger plot that just a random kidnapping.

**I know, I know, finish it already. I will, I will. One more chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Abby's Lab**_

Abby almost tripped as she ran into her lab switching on computers as she went, "Okay guys we have work to do, Tony is in the hospital. Awww, I know, we'll send flowers, but he is doing better, he is awake and thinking and that is why you guys... have to get to work." she started pulling out the evidence that had already been tested for other things but Tony was suggesting a different scenario and that would require more tests and more digging, she was excited to find the answers.

She went about doing the DNA test first, she wanted to see if Miranda was truly the daughter of the diplomat, if not then they would have to look at the case a whole lot differently. McGee was also making sure Miranda was not adopted, that could be a factor if the blood DNA was not a match, it was a different theory and she liked how DiNozzo thought.

_**Georgetown Memorial Hospital**_

Vance had listened to what Gibbs had to say regarding a plot against possibly their team, now he was in the process of getting the team covered with security, it had not even been a thought until Tony had been able to tell them that it wasn't right, that there was a problem with the chain of events.

Tony was still sleeping, the drugs still coursing through his damaged body, Gibbs wondered what it was that his second was having difficulty remembering, and hoped that he would be able to remember it given the head injury that had caused his unconsciousness for the past few days.

" They had to get us out of the way boss." A very groggy voice spoke from beneath the blanket. Tony was dreaming or was he? He felt as if he was drifting in and out of sleep, he felt drugged.

" Did you say something Tony?" Gibbs asked as he hung up the phone with McGee.

" They wanted us out of the way, the plan was to rid them of our intrusion in whatever they are planning, boss. It was never about the kidnapping but it was part of a bigger plan to throw us off, to make us think we were victorious." Tony attempted to get comfortable in the bed but was failing miserably.

Gibbs walked over and adjusted the bed setting and then assisted in adjusting Tony's broken leg, the cumbersome cast was heavy and difficult to move. "Better?"

Tony nodded, he knew he wasn't make a lot of sense but something wasn't right and he had to figure it out, " Much. Thanks boss." he stretched out his hand and pointed towards the television. "ZNN, maybe they have something on that will give us a clue."

Gibbs hesitated, not really wanting his second to be working while recovering from his injuries. " For half an hour then back to sleep." he ordered as he handed Tony the controller, though reluctantly.

Tony swiped at his eyes, they were still blurry from the concussion and the smoke exposure, he wondered silently how he had traveled down five flights of stairs with a broken arm and leg, he really didn't remember any pain while he was carrying Miranda. He blew it off to adrenaline and being terrified that the young girl would die.

Before Tony's thirty minutes were up he was asleep again but this time he was dreaming, reliving the explosion, seeing the smoke filled stairway and suddenly he was there, moving slowly down the stairs, getting Miranda to safety his only thought. He didn't feel any pain, his arm was working fine, his leg taking each step without a problem and then he stopped, he heard voices, but what were they saying?

They weren't speaking English, it wasn't Spanish, it wasn't Arabic, hell, the language was Russian. It was Russian, he didn't know any Russian but he recognized it as the language, he just knew. They were saying words, words that caught his attention,_"__Морская служба уголовных расследований"_ he said it out loud, his dream was vivid, the men were talking as if they were there with him, but it was a dream, or was it.

Then he heard another word, "_бомба_", now that word was definitely familiar, but it was the last words he heard that bothered him, and he struggled to repeat them, but the men wanted to shut him up, they were throwing him against the wall, hitting him in the head, a gun pointed at him went off, but it didn't, it was someone else, another gun, he dropped to the floor of the smoked filled stairwell and the door to the outside garage closed, they were left to die .

Suddenly, there was a strong voice attempting to awaken him, to get him to pay attention and when he opened his eyes he repeated the words that bothered him so much in the dream, _" __Директор Вэнс никогда не будет знать, что его ударил."_

Gibbs looked at his second and repeated the sentence but in English, " Director Vance will never know what hit him." Where did you hear that Tony? Gibbs asked as he reached over and grabbed his friend a cup of water.

Tony drank greedily from the Styrofoam cup then answered, " The men outside the stairwell, they were planting a bomb inside the Navy Yard boss. Their target is Director Vance? The bomb didn't cause me to break my arm or my leg, they did it, they found me and Miranda, they wanted to kill me but a gunshot stopped them."

Tony had beads of sweat forming on his head, his skin paled, the reason for the elaborate scheme was so they would have the opportunity to plant a bomb, during the chaos of a young missing Diplomat's daughter, who was really just part of the plan.

Gibbs quickly dialed the number, Abby and McGee were at the Navy Yard, and if there were a bomb, then they could be in danger too.

"McGee, I need you to listen, we have a bomb threat." Gibbs voice echoed over the small cell.

"A what boss?" Tim asked as he continued looking at the screen, the name Miranda Blanchard on the screen, a different picture of a beautiful blonde who had been pulled out of the Anacostia River, but it wasn't the Miranda that they had rescued and Tim felt panic start to well up inside him.

"Tim there could be a bomb in the Navy Yard. Where is Vance?" Gibbs asked his voice frantic as he kept a watchful eye on Tony.

" He just left, his car is parked in the new parking garage. He said that he was going home for lunch." he answered then added, "Boss, they just found Miranda Blanchard's body in the Anacostia River, it's not the woman we rescued boss."

"I know McGee!" Gibbs almost screamed into the phone, " Call Vance now and get his ass somewhere safe, then get a bomb squad there to check out the garage and anywhere else a bomb could be possibly placed!" Gibbs ordered, he knew, hoped, that the bomb would not be in the NCIS building but there were no guarantees, especially in regards to the adjoining garage.

"Should we evacuate boss?" Tim asked nervously.

"Stay put until I get there. Call Ziva, tell her to come to the hospital now." He ended the call and attempted to call Vance's cell, it was busy, hopefully McGee had got him on the cell.

Tony was attempting to get out of the bed now and Gibbs was having nothing of it, "Listen Tony, you did good, now let us figure out what these men are up to. Got me?" he looked into his seconds face and saw the disappointment of not being able to assist, but in Gibbs mind he had done more than his share.

Ducky stormed into the room, Palmer at his side. "Jethro, I just looked at Anthony's x-rays, it was not as we thought, the breaks were clean, they weren't caused by a bomb."

"Tell me something I don't know Duck, take care of DiNozzo, I have a bomb to find." Gibbs stated and started out the door, "And keep his ass in bed even if you have to sit on it." he pointed towards a visibly upset DiNozzo, then left, leaving the two men stunned and in the dark, Ducky hoped that Tony could fill them in on the facts.

**Well, just shoot me, I am too invested in this story now so I might as well go another chapter or two. Heck it is making me want to finish all those other stories I have, and to get out another chapter of concussed. I am loving to write again.**


	5. Chapter 5

NCIS

Gibbs entered the bullpen, Abby and McGee stood looking at the plasma screen, Vance standing on the balcony looking down.

Gibbs glanced upwards towards the director, he was safe, then he headed over to his team. "What do you have McGee?"

" Miranda Blanchard, she was a sophomore but it was her first year at St Mary's College. She was the daughter of Anna Blanchard, no father was listed on the birth certificate boss." Tim clicked the picture on the plasma screen and Colonel Blanchard's face appeared on the screen, " Blanchard has been using an alias. Need I say more, he wasn't a diplomat. He sells used cars at the corner of Oak and Palms."

A picture of salesman of the Month appeared next, the smiling face of the salesman was that of the man who had declared ,with all the paperwork in order, that he was a diplomat whose daughter had been taken by a drug cartel from Mexico.

Tim continued, "The Pakistani was a citizen of Mardan. He moved here to Washington twenty years ago, he was/is an illegal, never became a citizen. His real name is Gilzai Zarrani He stole the identity of Colonel Blanchard when he had only been here in the United States for a year and has lived in the suburbs of Washington DC with his Pakistani wife, Marta, for the past ten years."

Vance had joined the group, also interested in what McGee was saying. The Naval Yard had been cleared, there had been no bombs. Vance had felt that the plan might have been foiled when all the men had died at the abandoned parking garage and the attached building. At least he hoped that was case.

As the team continued to review the information Abby jumped in with what she had found in the evidence.

" Just as Tony indicated, Miranda, or should I say the pretend Miranda, was not a match to the Colonel or any other person in our data base so I ran her blood through the International database, bingo, I got a hit. Her name is Aglaya Slavina a citizen of Saint Petersburg,Russia. She was working for her Government's intelligence agency, the GRU, and she is not twenty-one but a whopping thirty-three, guess they found the tree of life over there." she joked though nobody was in a joking mind set. " Okay, anyways, she left Russia three weeks ago and obtained a Visa to enter our country on a trade type agreement with our government. I believe the name of the program is Operation Intelligence Gathering or IGU."

"You mean our Government made arrangements for her to come here on a training mission, a sort of trade with Russia? We'll give you some of our secrets if you will give us some of yours. " Vance asked, not aware that their government did such a thing.

" Not exactly but close. It is a new program, actually very new. Like in the last month new, anyways she was part of the transition team. Her role was to get the program up and running, making the decisions on which secrets would be okay for her country to share in return for cooperation in certain tactical maneuvers that the GRU was involved in, but then she disappeared after a dispute with the individuals over the program." Abby finished.

" So Ms Slovina was not in any danger in that garage, she was using us, obtaining Intel on our division, seeing how we work together. It was never about a bomb but about gathering information on us." Gibbs interjected, everybody staring at him in shock, he usually didn't speak that much during these type of show and tells.

" I'm not for sure, but we need to find Ms Slovina, I need some answers."Vance replied.

" We need so;me answers, lets get to work, we have a lot of digging to do." Gibbs ordered as he rounded his desk and pulled his cell phone out, he needed to call Ziva, he needed her assist. Ducky, Palmer and security could keep watch over Tony.

_**Georgetown Memorial Hospital**_

Tony was sleeping again, Ducky and Palmer at his side playing chess with a board that the nurse had procured for them. They seemed oblivious to the two man security detail outside of Tony's room. They knew they were there but so far, all had been fine.

" Check." Palmer called out excitedly.

" Ahh, Jimmy, you are getting better and better at playing this game. But I hate to disappoint, Check mate." Ducky made his move on the board, as a stunned Palmer looked on, " When will you learn? I am the master." he laughed as he stood to check on his charge.

He walked over and took a look at his friend, a light beaded sweat had formed on his brow, an indication of the fever he had developed earlier in the day. He glanced at his watch and wondered why he hadn't seen a nurse in the past two hours. Though he did understand about the nursing shortage and the understaffed units he was concerned that it was way past time for Anthony's antibiotics. He would go to the desk and check on the medication as Palmer continued to sit in shock starring at the game board.

Ziva had been there earlier but after a call from Gibbs she had left quickly, there must have been some new information that required the team, minus one.

' I would expect that Gibbs or Timothy would have come to relieve Ziva, they must be busy.' Ducky thought to himself as he checked his watch, it was getting rather late and they had not eaten.

Ducky was about to make his way out the door when a nurse entered, she was of the beautiful foreign variety, tall and beautiful. Her accent was definitely Russian and her blonde curls could also indicate that she had some German heritage too.

" My dear girl, I was about to come looking for you. I do believe that our patient is running a fever again. I believe it is past time for his antibiotic." Ducky informed the nurse who seemed to be just starring at the man in the bed.

It took her a few seconds but she turned to answer, " I will take care of him right away."

She smiled at the elderly man then walked over and looked at the man in the bed, noting the strained lines on the man's face, his restlessness evident and deep inside she felt bad that she had been the cause of his pain. This man, whose name was Anthony DiNozzo, an Italian, was the man who had saved her life, saved her from men who would have killed her to get their terrorist plan activated. Together they would have been nothing more than collateral damage.

" Mr DiNozzo will need an assessment done, I'm sure you would not mind that he has his privacy." She stated in her thick accent as she pulled out a syringe filled with an amber liquid, she kept it out of the men's line of sight.

" We do need to get some dinner, Mr Palmer and I will be back in a just a few." Ducky grabbed his coat and hat then exited the room followed by Palmer, noting the security detail that was still standing guard at the door.

" We will need an escort." Ducky announced as he slipped his jacket on, Palmer doing the same. The request was expected since they were all still under protective detail.

The older agent waved them forward and they all left for dinner, leaving one security guard at the door.

**NCIS**

Ziva entered the bulllpen and chucked her coat to the back of the cubicle, she had been called to assist Gibbs in the hunt for the two missing individuals, Blanchard, and Miranda, who were not what they appeared to be. She would need a sitrep.

As she looked around for Gibbs and McGee, their cubicles empty, she was drawn to the plasma screen, a familiar face met her, the nurse who had been taking care of Tony before she left, the nurse who had greeted her as she took the call from Gibbs. " Oh my goodness, I need to tell Gibbs." she ripped the phone from its holder and hit the green button on the speed dial and waited for the rings, grabbing her coat as she headed back to the stairwell, she had to get back to the hospital.

_**Georgetown Memorial Hospital**_

Tony's eyes opened but he felt drugged, _off_. He was about to call out for assistance when he saw her, Miranda.

"You!" His voice was slurred, his eyes blurred.

"Shh, I am not here to hurt you, I wanted to thank you for saving my life. We would have both died if you had not been so brave." she pulled over a chair and sat down, then took hold of his hand. " I am putting my life at risk being here but I needed to see you, to let you know that I am very appreciative of your bravery."

" You drugged me." he attempted to speak, but the drug was pulling him under.

" Yes Anthony, I drugged you but it was so we could have this moment. It will wear off in a few hours." she gave him a smile, it was sincere, she was being sincere.

"Never been called brave before." he slurred again, a kind of goofy smile crossed his face and he was feeling the need to apologize, after a few seconds he managed to speak a little bit clearer, "Don't do well with drugs." he shrugged, feeling that she would not hurt him, but he was wanting to know her involvement with the men in the garage, but the drug would not allow him to ask.

"Were you?" He was only able to manage a few words before she placed her fingers on his lips and leaned over, placing a very deep kiss to his mouth. He did not fight her, it was nice.

When she pulled away he could feel some sort of connection, an emotional pull that he had never felt towards a woman.

" They will not be bothering you again Anthony. They are taken care of for good." she smiled and stood, she knew her time was short with her hero.

" No more boom." he almost giggled, he was feeling very giddy all of a sudden. The kiss had been nice in addition to the drug that was making him feel loopy, and his fevered eyes glistened under the dim fluorescent lights.

Aglaya smiled down and turned to leave, almost reluctant to let loose of the man's hand. She started for the door and as almost a second thought she turned, " If ever you need a friend please call my government Anthony, I would love to have that first date." she smiled, then disappeared.

Tony wanted to stay awake, he needed to talk to Gibbs but whatever she had given him pulled him under and he slept.

**Well, DiNozzo is my hero and my James Bond, he always gets the girl. Another chapter tomorrow.  
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